The Super-Duper Cheap Bargains Thread

[Ataraxia]

http://www.riseofthemasters.com/

And so much more...

[kishnevi]

And: who is responsible for the hideous artwork?

If you dig deep enough into the "Worst CD Cover Art" thread, you will find these offerings there.  I believe the overall effect got compared to a group portrait of the Corleone family.

[Karl Henning]

Hah!

[Karl Henning]

And of course, dubious artwork and its gangsterly provenance is a theme of Mickey Blue Eyes

[bigshot]

I bet BIS derives more than just a healthy income from X5. I bet they see a lot of money from it. There is very little cost in selling MP3s, and Amazon is selling a boatload of these sets. You can bet the major labels have their eye on this business model and will probably follow suit. Most likely at the Apple store.

[Ataraxia]

Doesn't Apple already have these? I'll check later...

[bigshot]

As the market turns away from the CD format to direct digital downloads, the major labels are going to start shifting from 50 CD megaboxes of back catalog to these virtual MP3 megaboxes. Apple has the edge on sound quality with their AAC files. I can see big labels setting up exclusives with them that aren't marketed with the broad indiscriminating brush that these X5 sets are.

The next step would be an all you can eat streaming subscription service.

[Ataraxia]

The next step would be an all you can eat streaming subscription service.

Like Spotify, which I subscribe to.

[Brian]

The next step would be an all you can eat streaming subscription service.

Or the advert-free but DG/Decca/Sony-free Naxos Music Library.

[Karl Henning]

So all the importance is the efficiency of the delivery channel, and quality of the content matters nothing.

Yes, I knew this was where this was going, all this time ; )

[bigshot]

The quality of the MP3s and the quality of the performances in the sets I've sampled so far is very high.

I just checked Amazon's top 100 classical downloads and these guys are wiping the floor with the major labels.

http://www.amazon.com/Best-Sellers-MP3-Downloads-Classical/zgbs/dmusic/195264011/ref=zg_bs_nav_dmusic_2_digital-music-album

I clicked down a few pages and it was one of the X5 sets after another... all aimed at different audiences... Classical Music for Readers, Chill Out Classics, Classical Music for Babies, etc. They're selling the same music in a dozen different ways and they're selling TONS of it. These guys are marketing geniuses. I bet a lot of people are being introduced to classical music for the first time by these sets.

[stingo]

I can wipe my ass with two bucks or buy some music.

True - the question then is which provides the most pleasure.

Thread duty: Well I was/am pretty annoyed to see Noriko Ogawa's Debussy solo piano set in the RotM Debussy set. I got the Debussy piano works download for 7.99. All that said, it seems that at least two CDs aren't present in either, and one of those is only in the boxed set from BIS.

[Karl Henning]

Brautigam's Mozart is 'stagnant back catalog'?

In today's market *all* Mozart recordings are stagnant back catalog. We may not like it, but you have to be realistic.

And there it is: the big clue that for this member, quality of content means nothing.

[Opus106]

Oh, give it a break, Karl. So he likes "cheap" recordings. So what?

This thread has gone long enough with nary a SDCB sighting! 

[Ataraxia]

YEAH, bring on the SDCB!

[Brian]

Presto's having a clearance sale on Naxos. A lot of CDs for US $5.50 and downloads for $6.

[Sammy]

As the market turns away from the CD format to direct digital downloads, the major labels are going to start shifting from 50 CD megaboxes of back catalog to these virtual MP3 megaboxes.

Being one of the older members here, I sure hope and expect that CDs will keep a high profile until I croak.  As for megaboxes of either  the real or virtual type, I have no interest in them.

However, the future belongs to the youngsters on the board; I trust they will end up highly satisfied with no physical products.  Maybe we'll reach a point where virtual spouses become the norm; at least they won't bitch at you (although the sex could be problematic).

[stingo]

What about this?

[asin]B007QZ0LMO[/asin]

11 discs for approx $25 from the Amazon US marketplace.

[Ataraxia]

What about this?

11 discs for approx $25 from the Amazon US marketplace.

Oh, that looks interesting!

[stingo]

Oh, that looks interesting!

I thought so too!